2016 Status Report:

WOMEN,
WORK
AND
WAGES IN
VERMONT
 T his brief is published by Change The Story VT (CTS), a multi-year strategy to align
philanthropy, policy, and program to significantly improve women’s economic status
in Vermont. CTS is fueled by three statewide organizations focused on women’s economic
well-being: the Vermont Women’s Fund, Vermont Commission on Women, and Vermont
Works for Women.

This is the first in a series of briefs we will publish on topics related to women’s
economic well-being. Much of the data in the briefs is either new, or not regularly collected
or published. All of the data is specific to Vermont, and all is critical - not just in what it
reflects about women, but in its implications for the entire Vermont economy.

Among the findings:

W
 omen are significantly more likely than men to live in poverty
or economic insecurity – in large part because they have primary responsibility
for the care of minor children.

4
 3% of VT women who work full-time do not make enough to
cover basic living expenses as defined by VT’s Joint Fiscal Office.

T
 he poverty rate for families headed by single women is 37.5% -
nine times the poverty rate of married couples.

 omen who work full-time are disproportionately employed

W in low-wage
jobs – in every age group, at every level of education.

V
 T women are especially vulnerable in their senior years, when their
median annual income from Social Security ($10,000) is half that of men
($20,000).

Much of the data in this report was collected and analyzed by Flint Springs Associates, a Vermont-based consulting
firm. Principal researchers were Joy Livingston and Vicki Hart. Additional authors include Change The Story VT
team members Tiffany Bluemle and Lindsey Lathrop. For more information, contact info@changethestoryvt.org.

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 DEMOGRAPHIC SNAPSHOT OF VT WOMEN

 Women and girls comprise 51% of Vermont’s population.1

 heir median age is 43 – 5 years older than the national median for women and 2 years
T
older than the median for Vermont men. Women’s share of Vermont elders is 3% higher
than men’s; its largest age group is between 45 and 64.

 ermont women and men are overwhelmingly White (95%).2

V

5
 1% of women are married. 28% of women have never married (as compared
to 34% of men). Women are more likely than men to be widowed (9% versus 2%). These
numbers are on par with national statistics.

Marital Status - Men, Women

60%

40%

20%

0%
Never Married Married Widowed Divorced

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey - 5 Year Average (2009-2013). Persons age 15 and older.

 Outside of married couples, women shoulder primary responsibility for

the care of minor children.

% Households With Minor Children

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Widowed Divorced Separated Never Married

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey - 5 Year Average (2009-2013). Persons age 15 and older.

V
 ermont women are comparatively well-educated: 33% of adult
women hold a Bachelor’s degree or more – six points higher than the U.S. average of
27% and four points higher than Vermont men.
U.S. Census Current Population Survey 5 Year Average (2009-2013) analysis of microdata. Persons 18 years and older.

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 EDUCATION NOTWITHSTANDING, WOMEN ARE
SIGNIFICANTLY MORE LIKELY THAN MEN TO LIVE IN
POVERTY OR ECONOMIC INSECURITY.

Income Quartiles: % Adult Women Income Quartiles: % Adult Men

57% of
women 35% 35%
28% 28%
have
21% 21%
incomes
14% 14%
that fall 7% 7%
below 0% 0%
$30,000 Q2: $13,500 -
30,000

Q3: $30,000 -
50,000

Q2: $13,500 -
30,000

Q3: $30,000 -
50,000
Q4: $50,000 +

Q4: $50,000 +
Q1: <0-$13,500

Q1: <0-$13,500
while 57%
of men have
incomes
above that U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release, 2009-2013 – restricted to persons 18 years
and older, quartiles generated on total population using both genders.
number.
Women’s poverty is affected significantly by marital status and
responsibility for minor children.
Family Poverty Rate Comparison - By Marital Status

40%

Without minor
30% children
7% of Vermont
families live 20% With minor children
below the federal
poverty line, but 10%
that statistic
nearly 0%
doubles Married couple Single female All families
families householder
to 13.4%
U.S. Census Bureau, 2009-2013 5-Year American Community Survey.
when minor
children live
Overall, womenin poverty are 3 to 4 times more likely to live with
at home.
minor children than are men.
T he rate is five % Men, Women In Poverty With Minor Children By Family Status
times higher 14%
– or 37% - if a Widowed
86%
woman is head 23%
of the household. Divorced
77%
6%
Separated
94%
27%
Never Married
73%
U.S. Census CPS ASEC 5 Year Average (2010-2014) – Adult Civilian Persons Poverty Status 2009 to 2013.
3

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

A NOTE THE RATE AT WHICH VT WOMEN PARTICIPATE IN THE
ABOUT LABOR FORCE IS SEVEN PERCENTAGE POINTS HIGHER
PART-TIME
WORK THAN THE NATIONAL AVERAGE.
Understanding why
women work part- The rate at which Vermont women work outside the home has climbed steadily over the
time is critical to any
past four decades. Currently, 66% of adult women and 69% of adult men
discussion about
women’s earnings, participate in Vermont’s labor force,3 as compared to national averages of 58%
wealth, and the wage of women and 70% of men.
gap. National data
produced by the Women and men participate in similar trajectories over a lifespan, peaking between the
U.S. Bureau of ages of 22-54, prime years also for bearing and raising children.
Labor Statistics
Labor Force Participation By Age - Men And Women
indicates that just
18% of women
100%
worked
part-time for
economic 75%
reasons (i.e., they
% Participation

cannot find full-

50%
time employment),
and 82% for
non-economic 25%
reasons (which
can include caring
for family members, 0%
16 to 19

20 to 21

22 to 24

25 to 29

30 to 34

35 to 44

45 to 54

55 to 59

60 to 61

62 to 64

65 to 69

70 to 74

75+
health issues,
disability, or personal
choice).5 Age
U.S. Census, American Community Survey 2011-2013.
According to an
analysis released
by the Institute
for Women’s Full-Time vs. Part-Time Work
Policy Research,
women in the U.S.
who report working The majority of men and women in Vermont’s labor force work full-time: 4
part-time for non-

{ {
economic reasons
are nine times 75% full-time 90% full-time
Women Men
more likely 25% part-time 10% part-time
than men to
cite family
Overall, women make up 45% of Vermont’s full-time workforce and 71% of its
care issues for
year-round, part-time workforce.
their part-time
work.6 U.S. Census Current Population Survey (CPS) 5 Year Average (2011-2015) – Adult Civilian Persons.

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 4 OUT OF 10 WOMEN WHO WORK FULL-TIME DO NOT EARN
ENOUGH TO COVER BASIC LIVING EXPENSES.

For all their work, a significant share of women working full-time - 43% - do not earn
enough to meet basic expenses as defined by Vermont’s Joint Fiscal Office.7 17%
make hourly wages of less than $10.10 an hour.8 Men fare better, but not by a
very wide margin: 36% of men earn wages below the Basic Needs standard; 13% earn
below $10.10 an hour.

% Women, Men Full-Time Workers Earning Below

$10.10/hr And Below Basic Needs Budget

50%

40% % Below $10.10/hr.

% Below Basic Needs

30%

20%

10%

0%
Women Men
U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).

Median annual income for women working full-time is $37,000, $7,000 less than the
median annual salary of men. This translates into a wage gap of 16% - or 16 cents on
every dollar earned by a man.

The gap narrows to 14% when a woman has a If a woman has dependent children, the wage
college degree... gap increases to 23%...

Median Full-Time Annual Earnings Wage Gap - Full-Time Annual Earnings When
By Education & Gender Minor Children In Household
$60,000

$60,000 $58,000 $48,000

$50,000
$45,000 $36,000

$30,000 $24,000

$15,000 $12,000

$0 $0
<High school High school Some College Without children With children
grad or GED college grad under 17 yrs. under 17 yrs.

U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).
5

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 UNDERSTANDING THE WAGE GAP
16¢
What accounts for the wage gap between men and women who work full-time?

In demographic terms – age, education level, marital status and responsibility for
WHAT DOES
dependent children -- the profile of men and women full-time workers is
A LOSS OF
strikingly similar.
SIXTEEN
CENTS
Demographic Characteristics Of Full-Time
ON EVERY Workers – Men and Women
DOLLAR
EARNED
MEAN?
For a single person,
it’s equivalent to
52 53 55% 56% 57% 64% 32% 34%
seven months rent.
Average Age % with College % Married % with Dependent
For a family of Degree or higher Children
four, $7,000 would
U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).
buy six months
of childcare or
groceries.9 Why, then, the difference in wages?

Part of the answer lies in where women work. A comparison of fields in which
either women or men are the majority of workers shows that part of the wage gap can be
explained by the fact that fields in which women have been traditionally clustered pay
lower wages. As the chart below shows, median annual wages in occupations
where women or men constitute significant majorities (75% or
higher) are strikingly different.

Median Annual Earnings In Predominantly Female/Male Occupations

VS.

$45,300 $33,400 $28,000 $22,000 $37,000 $40,000 $50,000 $75,000

Elementary Office Healthcare Personal Construction Manufacturing Protection Engineering
School Ed. Worker Support Services & Production Services

U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).
6

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 VERMONT WOMEN CONSTITUTE A DISPROPORTIONATE
SHARE OF LOW-WAGE WORKERS.

Despite their lower overall participation in the labor force, women

of all ages
constitute a larger share of Vermont’s low-wage workers.

% Individuals Working Full Time Earning <$10.10/hr. By Age

60%

50% 52%
48%
40%

30%
26%
20% 24%
16%
10% 11%
14%
10%
0%
18-24 25-44 45-64 65+

U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).

They are also more likely than men to have earned post-secondary degrees.

% Individuals Working Full Time Earning

<$10.10/hr. By Highest Degree

27%
< High School
44%
18%
High School
24%

Some College
14%
22%
College Grad
7%
11%

% of all low-wage workers

U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 THE WAGE GAP IS NOT JUST A FUNCTION OF BEING
CLUSTERED IN LOW-WAGE WORK.

There are significant salary differences within occupations.

In jobs on the high end of the pay scale:

% Women in Salaries
Wage Gap
Occupation Women Men
Chief Executives 28% $62,000 $90,000 31%
Management Analysts 21% $49,000 $80,000 39%
Lawyers, Judges, other 38% $53,000 $108,000 51%
Judicial Workers
U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).

And in jobs in which women are an equal share or majority of workers:

% Women in Salaries
Wage Gap
Occupation Women Men
Office & Administrative 75% $32,250 $41,831 16%
Support
Nurses, Technologists, 83% $50,000 $60,000 17%
Technicians
Education, Training & 69% $44,588 $53,465 22%
Library Occupations
Nonprofit Executives 70% $66,700 $88,700 25%
Education 62% $60,000 $81,000 26%
Administrators
Personal Care & Service 74% $22,334 $32,451 31%
U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).
Nonprofit information from 2014 Report on Nonprofit Wages and Benefits in Northern New England | Vermont Edition by Common Good
Vermont is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution – NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Interestingly, the wage gap appears to be narrowest in several occupations in which

women are a distinct minority:

% Women in Salaries
Wage Gap
Occupation Women Men
Construction & Extraction 3% $40,917 $40,571 0%
Computers & Mathematics 26% $69,453 $72,638 4%
Life, Physical & Soc. Sciences 39% $53,269 $56,227 5%
Engineering 11% $70,000 $75,000 5%
Protective Services 18% $51,250 $55,140 7%
U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 WHY THIS MATTERS

What women earn has critical implications for Vermont families – and for the Vermont
economy.

 Women’s wages aren’t supplementary – they are essential:

Women contribute at least 40% of income in 1/3 of Vermont families.10

W
 omen’s lower wages put women at risk as they age: As the chart
below shows, women’s median Social Security draw is half that of Vermont men. More
importantly, women’s median total income falls well below the $23,000
needed to cover basic expenses (see endnote for explanation).11

Income In Retirement (65+ Years)

$30,000

$25,000 $22,980 Elder Index

(cost of living)
$20,000 for single Elder
Renters
$15,000
$11,670 Federal
$10,000
poverty level for
$5,000 single-person
$10,000 $20,000 $15,500 $27,000 household age 65
$ and over
Median Social Median Social Median Income Median Income
Security (Women) Security (Men) (Women) (Men)

U.S. Census Current Population Survey 5 Year Average (2009-2013); restricted to persons 65 years and older.

Given that Vermont’s share of elders is projected to expand to 25% of the state’s
population by 2030,12 and because women are more likely to live longer–and thus are
more likely to live alone in old age,13 women’s relative economic insecurity
threatens to put added pressure, not just on elders and their
families, but on state subsidies and benefits.

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

??
QUESTIONS WE SHOULD ASK…

…When considering significant investments in economic

?
development (whether in a region, industry, or corporation):

Who benefits from the jobs created?

Is there a way to ensure those economic opportunities will be available equally to
both men and women?

?
…When weighing significant investments in workforce
development:

What is the gender ratio of those receiving skills training funded by state and
federal dollars?

?
Is this an occupation where men or women constitute a significant majority of
workers?

Will this investment meet future labor demands for Vermont in terms of recruiting
and training both men and women in these occupations?

…When projecting long-term state financial commitments:

?
What is the long-term economic impact of women’s lower wages on state-funded
benefits and subsidies? On Vermont families?

?
…W
 hen crafting or reviewing state policy decisions, priorities,
and program evaluations:

?
Are our decisions consistently informed by data that is disaggregated by gender?
If not, why not?

Is the data we need being collected? If not, why not?

10

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

ENDNOTES
1
Vermont Department of Health: (2010 is Census Count as of April 1; 2009 are intercensal estimates as of July 1, based on
the 2000 and 2010 Census counts (revised Oct 2012); and, 2011-2013 data are post-censal estimates as of July 1.

2
U.S. Census Current Population Survey - 5 Year Average (2011-2015) -- All Persons.

3
BLS, Women in the Labor Force: A Data Book, Report 1049, May 2014.

4
U.S. Census Current Population Survey (CPS) 5 Year Average (2011-2015) – Adult Civilian Persons.

5
Bureau of Labor Statistics: Table 22: Persons at work in nonagricultural industries by age, sex, race Hispanic or Latino
ethnicity, marital status and usual full- or part-time status (2014). Note: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data related to
the reasons why women work part-time is national data, and unavailable by state.

6
The Status of Women in the States: 2015. Cynthia Hess, Ph.D., Jessica Milli, Ph.D., Jeff Hayes, Ph.D., and Ariane
Hegewisch, M. Phil. with Yana Mayayeva, Stephanie Román, Julie Anderson, M.A., and Justine Augeri IWPR, p.92.

7
As defined by the 2015 Basic Needs Budget figures developed by the VT Joint Fiscal Office and controlled for family size.
Based on averaging rural and urban estimates.

8
We have defined a low-wage threshold of less than $10.10 an hour – the average of the mandated VT state minimum
wage rates for 2016-18 (rounded up from $10.03).

9
Calculations based on estimated expenses as outlined in JFO 2015 Basic Needs Budget tables.

10 
U.S. Census Bureau, Public Use Microdata Sample; American Community Survey 5 Year Data Release (2009-2013).

11 
The Elder Economic Security Standard™ Index (Elder Index) defines economic security as the income level at which
either one or two fully retired seniors age 65 or older are able to cover basic and necessary living expenses without
relying on public assistance programs, loans or gifts. The Index was developed by the Gerontology Institute at the
University of Massachusetts. Indexed income line in the chart reflects costs of living specific to single elderly Vermonters
who rent.

12
U.S. Census Bureau Projections (2009).

13 
An Aging Nation: The Older Population in the United States, Population Estimates and Projections, Orton, Velkoff, and
Hogan, U.S. Census Bureau, May 2014. https://www.census.gov/prod/2014pubs/p25-1140.pdf.

This report was informed by the perspectives and expertise of many.

Change The Story VT would especially like to recognize the contributions of:

Mat Barewicz, Vermont Department of Labor

Deb Brighton
Cary Brown, Vermont Commission on Women
Cynthia Char, Char Associates
Doug Hoffer, State of Vermont
Felicia Kornbluh, University of Vermont
Elaine McCrate, University of Vermont
Kathleen Patterson, Building Bright Futures

11

VT WOMEN’S FUND | VT COMMISSION ON WOMEN | VT WORKS FOR WOMEN

 412 Farrell St. #200
South Burlington, VT 05403
www.changethestoryvt.org
802.861.7848